Library and Information Technologyhttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu
Tue, 26 Feb 2019 13:47:13 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.10From Special Collections/University Archives: The Burma-Bucknell Bowlhttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2019/02/26/from-special-collections-university-archives-the-burma-bucknell-bowl/
Tue, 26 Feb 2019 13:47:13 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8460Did you know there is an award given every spring to a Bucknell University organization or individual who has made exceptional contributions to the intercultural and international understanding among the Bucknell community? It is called the Burma-Bucknell Bowl Award, and it was inspired by the original Burma-Bucknell Bowl, which was gifted to the University in 1958 as recognition for the years of friendship and connection between the Bucknell University community and the nation of Burma, which is known today as Myanmar.

The Bucknell-Burma connection began in 1858, when a Burmese student named Maung Shaw Loo came to Bucknell University and became the first international student to study at the University, as well as the first Burmese student ever to study in the United States. After completing his Bucknell education, Shaw Loo went on to attend medical school and later returned to Burma to become distinguished in the field of medicine as well as serving as the physician to the Burmese King. Ninety years after Shaw Loo’s arrival in Lewisburg, the University decided to recognize it unique and long standing ties with Burma and Burmese students by creating the Burma-Bucknell Weekends.

Beginning in 1948, the Burma-Bucknell Weekends were recommended by Miss Helen Hunt and Mr. and Mrs. Samuel H. Rickard. Helen Hunt was the daughter of former Bucknell president, Emory W. Hunt, and for many years a teacher and administrator in Burma. She suggested that Bucknellians invite Burmese students and citizens to campus for a weekend to get acquainted and celebrate years of connection. From the beginning, the weekends were a success and had excellent cooperation between the University, the Embassy of the Union of Burma, the Burma delegation to the U.N., the U.S. Department of State, and private agencies. Through several panel discussions, lectures, exhibits, and demonstrations, the weekends brought together the worlds of university, community, religion, government, and business in mutual understanding across diverse ethnic groups.

The Burma-Bucknell weekends reached their peak in 1958, when the Bucknell community and nation of Burma celebrated not just the 10th anniversary of the weekends, but also the 100th anniversary of Maung Shaw Loo’s arrival in the U.S. To honor this occasion, many special guest were present at the celebratory weekend, such as Ambassador U Win of Burma, Miss Lizbeth Shaw Loo (the daughter of Maung Shaw Loo) and Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas.

During the main banquet of the 10th anniversary weekend, the Burma-Bucknell Bowl was presented to Bucknell President Odgers by Ambassador U Win as a gift from the President of Burma. Mounted on teakwood lions, brought from Rangoon (which is modern day Yangon) for the occasion, the bowl rests on a large stand with a shield bearing the inscriptions: “The Burma-Bucknell Bowl, March 1, 1958, symbolizing 100 years of friendly relations between the people of Burma and Bucknell University, awarded annually in recognition of a significant contribution to the local brotherhood and good citizenship.”

The bowl was originally put on display with a special exhibit of Burmese textiles, lacquers, carvings, and photographs for a ten-day period after the 1958 weekend celebration. An interpretation of the exhibit and a showing of color films on Burma was also presented. Currently, the Burma-Bucknell Bowl is on display in Special Collections/University Archives reading room.

Burma-Bucknell Weekends are no longer held, however, Bucknell continues to recognize the importance of its historic relationship with Burma. Each spring, the University continues the tradition of awarding the Burma-Bucknell Award to the Bucknell individual or organization making a significant to intercultural and international understanding. which fits the inscription it bears. For further information about the Burma-Bucknell Bowl and to see it on display, please visit the Special Collections/University Archives on Lower Level 1 of the Bertrand Library.

]]>From Special Collections/University Archives: Bucknell Hallhttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2019/02/12/from-special-collections-university-archives-bucknell-hall/
Tue, 12 Feb 2019 15:38:57 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8454Every morning, I would pass by a building named Bucknell Hall, unaware of its purpose or history. I rarely saw students walk in or out of it, and when I asked fellow Bucknellians what the building was used for, they also replied with uncertainty. This inquiry inspired me to research the building which shares our university name, and I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the construction of this particular building began an era of reform and prosperity for the University.

In the early 1880’s, the University at Lewisburg (the former name of Bucknell University) was experiencing financial concerns. In need of improved architecture, William Bucknell, who was a trustee from 1846-1863 and Chairman of the Board from 1882-1890, gave a gift $50,000 to the University (about $1,300,000 today). The first building they erected with such an outstanding gift was Bucknell Hall. The gift was also used to construct or renovate other buildings, such as the observatory, the Bucknell Cottage (currently Larrison Cottage), an original chemical laboratory (the Art Building), the Academy annex (Taylor Hall), and also provide large sums to scholarships.

According to a description of the building at the time, Bucknell Hall was to be “an auditorium that would serve as a chapel, recital, and lecture hall, and the heart of the university.” Originally called Reunion Hall, its construction began in 1885 and was complete in 1886. They chose to build Bucknell Hall on Loomis Street next to the President’s House because it was equidistant from the Female Institute, the College, the Academy, and the School of Music. Upon its opening day on June 23, 1886, the trustees and University showed their extreme gratitude for this gift and William Bucknell’s other contributions by interrupting their annual meeting proceeding to not only attend the Bucknell Hall dedication, but to unanimously resolve that “the name of this institution be changed from the University at Lewisburg to Bucknell University.”

Under this proud name, the University and Hall have prospered. For many years, the entire student body, as well as staff and faculty, would attend the hall each morning for chapel services, but by 1935, the student body had outgrown Bucknell Hall. Due to the increase in secularization of the University and the construction of alternative spaces, the demands on Bucknell Hall have been regularly reshaped, especially in regards to its basement. From the 1930’s-1959, the psychology department was housed in the basement, and the hall space was for meetings, performances, and the occasion classroom. From 1959-1966, ROTC was housed in the basement, and later joined in the 60’s by the music department. In 1978, Bucknell Hall was placed on the Pennsylvania Inventory of Historic Places, and finally, in 1988, renovation began on the hall which at that point was in great disrepair, to preserve it as a “as a center for rhetoric, including poetry, and for the performing arts.”

Bucknell Hall then became the home of the Stadler Poetry Center; of which it still remains today. Slight renovation was done again this past year to maintain the hall as a place of honor and beauty, and it continues to be used for rhetoric and the performing arts. Now as I walk by this unique university landmark, I smile. Understanding its historical significance among Bucknellians of the past, present, and future, I hope to attend a performance in the hall before I graduate this upcoming May. I encourage all those who are a part of the Bucknell community to do as well and embrace all the hall has to offer!

]]>From Special Collections/University Archives Haley Stodart ’19 on Bucknell Wrestlinghttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2019/01/24/from-special-collections-university-archives-haley-stodart-19-on-bucknell-wrestling/
Thu, 24 Jan 2019 19:23:55 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8450Weaving between people and under arms, I ran back to the bleachers with Swedish Fish in hand to sit by my mother. My brother’s match had begun, and as I entered the gym I could see him on the mat. His opponent was on his back, shoulder blades almost to the mat. James has him! His shoulders are down. One second…two seconds…pin!

From the age of five, much of my time was spent around wrestling, and the scene described above became common occurrence. As the years passed and the matches continued, my family became wrestling enthusiasts. When my mother called recently to announce they got tickets for the Bucknell vs. Penn State match on November 30th, I began to wonder about the history of the sport here on campus. What I discovered was a story of trials, support, and success.

Wrestling became an intercollegiate sport at Bucknell in 1944. The team had three matches that first season, winning two of the them. As the years passed, the team began to improve, having more matches, longer practices, and dedicated coaches behind them to support their success in Division I competition. One of those coaches was Robert “Bob” Ferraro, who coached at Bucknell for 25 years, having four athletes become NCAA All-Americans and several athletes wrestle in NCAA championships.

For years, the team did well, and when Bob Ferraro left, he was succeeded by John Hangley and then Tim Wittman. It was Wittman who had to see the temporary end of Bucknell’s wrestling program. In May of 2001 it was announced that Bucknell wrestling would be eliminated from the athletic program to remain in compliance with the Title IX Education Amendment. This amendment stated that institutions that receive federal funds cannot discriminate between men and women, which is determined by proportionality: the number of female athletes at a university must be proportionate to the number of female undergraduate students. At Bucknell in 2001, 41.9 percent of its athletes were women, but 48.7 percent of its undergraduates were female. As a result, the school decided it needed to have fewer male athletes, and the wrestling team was eliminated.

It remained this way until 2004, when Bucknell wrestling alum, William Graham, made a generous donation of approximately $8 million, which led to the installation of Graham Field for field hockey and women’s lacrosse, created an endowment to support women’s varsity sports, and allowed the wrestling program to regain varsity status in time for the 2006 – 2007 season. Dan Wirnsberger was hired in 2005 as the wrestling head coach to guide Bucknell’s new wrestling program back into national awareness and achievement. Wirnsberger has succeeded and currently ranks second on the Bison career wins’ list with 113. For four-straight seasons from 2013 to 2017, the Bison reached the double digits in dual victories for the first time in school history and earned third-place finishes at the EIWA Championships in 2015 and 2016, leading the Bison through one of their most successful stretches in program history.

Some of this success was through the support of William Graham, who contributed another $7 million to construct the Graham Building. This building contains a world-class training facility for the Bison wrestling team on the top floor and the Bucknell Student Health and the Counseling & Student Development Center on the ground floor. Completed in 2016, the state of the art facility has helped the bison wrestling program improve and thrive. I encourage all Bucknell students, faculty, and staff to go out and support the Bucknell wrestling team! I hope to see their opponents shoulder blades down…one second…two seconds…pin!

]]>From Special Collections/University Archives: Thomas Bahrt West Memorial Clockhttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2018/12/11/from-special-collections-university-archives-thomas-bahrt-west-memorial-clock/
Tue, 11 Dec 2018 19:25:55 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8445In 1936, the Phi Lambda Theta fraternity gave Bucknell University an artifact affectionately known as the Thomas West clock, often referred to as the “coal clock.” The clock was commissioned as a memorial by the Phi Lambda Theta fraternity, now known on campus as the Chi Phi fraternity, to honor one of their fallen brothers, Thomas Bahrt West, a member of the Bucknell Class of 1934, who died during his sophomore year in 1931. The clock is designed as a coal structure with the time mechanism placed in its center. “In Memory of Thomas Bahrt West” is carved into its base and the seal of Phi Lambda Theta fraternity carved along the top.

Phi Lambda Theta was founded at Bucknell in 1924, basing its membership on the character of a young man, regardless of his income or status. The chapter became a major academic and social force at Bucknell, even as it operated as a local fraternity dominated by larger, national fraternities on campus.. When Thomas West was a member of Phi Lambda Theta in 1931, the fraternity was alive and well, however, by 1935 – 1936 the chapter gave up its first house on 7th and Market Streets because of the depression and a bad financial situation. After the depression, the Phi Lambda Theta fraternity was revived and later joined the national organization of Chi Phi. Though many years have passed, Chi Phi brothers fondly remember many of the early Phi Lambda Theta members, including Thomas West.

Thomas Bahrt West was born in Coaldale, Pennsylvania on May 16, 1912. He attended the local Coaldale High School, graduating in 1929. The following year, he enrolled at Bucknell University with the class of 1934, and was affectionately known amongst his friends and classmates as “Tommy.” While on campus, he was a member of the Men’s Glee Club, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, the Bucknellian, and the Phi Lambda Theta fraternity, as mentioned above.

In 1931, Thomas was admitted to the Bucknell’s Ziegler Memorial Infirmary for what everyone thought was enteritis, but was diagnosed as bulbar paralysis, a rare type of infant paralysis affecting the brainstem. West passed away, his family received letters of sympathy from both classmates and the Phi Lambda Theta fraternity, writing that West was esteemed as a classmate, gentleman, and friend. His Phi Lambda Theta brothers affectionately wrote, “He was one of our Bucknell’s most outstanding students, being so well endowed by fate that success for him would have been inevitable,” (1934 L’ Agenda). Thomas West was also honored by Phi Mu Alpha by the donation $250.00 gift to the Student Loan Fund, establishing the Thomas West Fund in memory of their fallen member. Seven seniors were able to graduate through the Student Loan Fund, with one student supported by the Thomas West Fund.

A November 1975 letter written by Lloyd Hoffman, General Secretary for the Phi Lambda Theta fraternity and a member of the Bucknell class of 1932, describes how the clock was donated to Bucknell after the fraternity was disbanded in 1936. The University accepted the Thomas West clock and it was placed in storage in “Old Main,” now known as Roberts Hall. Eventually, the the “coal clock” made its way to the Bertrand Library and was displayed for many years in the acquisitions department until it was transferred to Special Collections/University Archives, where it is on display in the reading room exhibit cases.

Remembered fondly by so many, the clock honors Thomas Bahrt West and reminds us of his place in Bucknell’s history as a valued and cherished classmate and student. If you are interested in seeing the “coal clock” or learning more about this early Bucknell student, do not hesitate to stop by the Special Collections/University Archives on Lower Level 1 of the Bertrand Library.

]]>From Special Collections/University Archives: Bucknell’s School of Musichttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2018/11/12/from-special-collections-university-archives-bucknells-school-of-music/
Mon, 12 Nov 2018 16:28:33 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8441This fall, Bucknell welcomed many concert performers, various international ensembles, as well as the Class of 2022, with many new students coming to Bucknell with a passion for music and a sense of excitement as they chose music as their field of study. Bucknell is known for its enthusiasm for musical programming as well as its education of students pursuing a degree in music. It is worthwhile to step back from Bucknell’s current environment and understand how music developed as a focus of study at the University, as well as the opportunities it offered students to participate in music related activities.

Music was first taught at Bucknell in 1853 by Melville Malcolm. He offered individual classes for students who had an interest in the musical arts, but, at the time, there was no option to earn a degree or diploma for such study. It was not until 1887, when Elysee Aviragnet was hired, that music was seen as a possible field of study for Bucknell students.

Originally employed as a teacher of music at the Female Institute, Aviragnet became the director of the newly created Institute of Music in 1890. He was quite popular among the students, and as he raised the standard of the music department at the Institute, the Trustees thought it would be wise to create a separate school of music with Aviragnet as the director. This was accomplished three years later, with the opening of the Bucknell’s School of Music in 1893.

At the completion of the program, the Bucknell University School of Music awarded diplomas, not degrees. Courses included piano, pipe organ, voice culture and art of singing, wind instruments, history of music, public school music, harmony, composition, theory, and vergil clavier. The School offered courses at all levels, from beginner to advanced, because it wanted to open the music program to all interested students. Aware that college students often do not have the time to pursue studies in practical music, the Bucknell University School of Music, created various student musical groups, such as glee clubs, mixed chorus, orchestra, and band. An early promotional piece for the School of Music circa 1940 states that these groups were a place “where such limited ability as the average student may possess is furnished with able direction from the faculty.”

Since its inception, the Bucknell University School of Music was the only independent academic program associated with the University. Over ten years, the School increased its enrollment to approximately 124 students and steadily became more closely associated with the University’s academic curriculum. On September 21, 1921, faculty proposed to bring the School of Music into the University’s curriculum by establishing it as an academic department named the Department of Music. The creation of the Department of Music would come to pass under the presidency of Homer Rainey, who claimed that the “Colleges of Liberal Arts are coming to realize that they do not deserve the name unless they incorporate the Arts as a fundamental part of their program.” As a result, in April of 1932, Romeyn Rivenburg, Dean of the University, voted to abolish the non-degree, four-year School of Music and established a major or minor in music, which lead to either a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science degree.

Today, Bucknell offers students a professional music program with an internationally recognized faculty of performers, conductors, composers, authors, and lecturers where students can earn either a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Music degree. Regardless of students’ major or field of study, the Music Department welcomes all students to participate in a wide variety of musical opportunities, demonstrating the University’s long commitment to the value of musical studies in the liberal arts environment.

]]>From Special Collections/University Archives: Mary Wolfe, Bucknell University Trusteehttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2018/10/15/from-special-collections-university-archives-mary-wolfe-bucknell-university-trustee/
Mon, 15 Oct 2018 16:27:53 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8427Born into a family that exemplified intellectual pioneers, Mary Wolfe was considered one of the most prominent women at Bucknell, and in Pennsylvania, during her lifetime. She was born on March 31, 1874, the daughter of Charles Spyker Wolfe and Martha Meixel-Wolfe. Her family was closely connected with Bucknell from its beginning, as her great-grandfather was James Moore II, the founder of the University at Lewisburg, which would become Bucknell University. Her great-uncle was Dr. William Ludwig, the first chairman of the Board of Trustees, and her two grandfathers, Joseph Meixel and Samuel Wolfe, were also on the first board.

Mary Wolfe left her own mark on Bucknell as well, graduating from the Female Institute in 1891, and later becoming one of the first women to enter into the University at Lewisburg. While on campus, she was captain of the college girls’ basketball team and a tennis champion. She also managed the college publication The Mirror, was a member of Pi Beta Phi fraternity, and participated in Young Women’s Christian Association work. She graduated from the university in 1896 summa cum laude and was a commencement speaker.

Deciding that her true passion was in medicine and psychiatry, Mary Wolfe continued her education at Ann Arbor, and studied for three years in the department of medicine and surgery to receive her M.D. from the University of Michigan in 1899. That same fall, she became assistant physician in the woman’s department of the Pennsylvania Hospital at Norristown. Mary returned to Bucknell to received her A.M. degree in 1900, after which she moved up to chief physician in the women’s department at Norristown, where she remained until 1909. During this time, she campaigned throughout Pennsylvania for an institution that would train women with developmental disorders, but it wasn’t until 1913 that her efforts were recognized.

Governor John Tener looked to Mary Wolfe for her knowledge and experience to become a board member of the new Pennsylvania Village for Feeble-Minded Women of Child-bearing Age in Laurelton, Pennsylvania. The Village was established with the purpose of caring for “mentally defective” women of child-bearing age. According to Mary Wolfe, the primary objective was to segregate the girls and women “in order that they may not give birth to children and thus reproduce their mental defects in the coming generations.” Mary became its first superintendent in 1914, however due to World War I, its doors were not officially opened until December 5, 1919. Mary became one of the first doctors in the country to give more than custodial care to her patients, making training and parole her main objectives. Nationally recognized, her program made her patients, or “Dr. Mary’s girls,” sought after as efficient workers and employees. Mary retired from Laurelton in 1940, returning to her home in Lewisburg after serving as superintendent for 26 years.

Beyond her medical achievements, Mary had also been involved in various political and charitable organizations. She was president of the Woman’s Suffrage Party of Union County. She took a keen interest in the development of the curriculum and in all programs relating to the welfare of the women of Bucknell University. Recognizing her dedication to the medical field, the university bestowed upon her an honorary Doctor of Science degree in 1933. She was also elected a member of the Bucknell University Board of Trustees in 1935. Mary passed away on October 18, 1962 at the age of 88, leaving behind her a legacy of respect, dedication, and success.

]]>From Special Collections/University Archives: Bucknellians and the United States Army Ambulance Servicehttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2018/10/05/from-special-collections-university-archives-bucknellians-and-the-united-states-army-ambulance-service/
Fri, 05 Oct 2018 11:44:47 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8423“Goodbye everybody I’m off to fight the foe

In early May of 1917, just a month after the United States officially entered World War I, the French War Commission came to Washington D.C. and met with the Surgeon General, William Gorgas. Gorgas asked the commission how the United States Medical Department could he France. The answer he received was to take responsibility of caring for the wounded of the French Armies at the front. It was then that Gorgas authorized with the Secretary of War the organization of the United States Army Ambulance Service (U.S.A.A.S.). Only a month later, a group of brave Bucknell students joined the U.S.A.A.S as units 524 and 525.

Under the leadership of Alex Chalfont, ’19, who contacted the American Field Service, fifty Bucknellians left their studies to enlist in the ambulance service. Each Ambulance Unit was supposed to have 36 men, but as Bucknell alumnus and a member of unit 525 Veteran John B. Vanderbilt stated, “We had too many for one and not enough for two units. We were allowed to solve this situation ourselves by dividing into two groups, keeping fraternity brothers together, and bringing our units up to quota with other recruits after we reached camp.” The camp he spoke of was Camp Crane in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where the fifty men, led by Lt. George H. Clapp, arrived in June of 1917 and became units 524 and 525.

After only a few weeks of training, Unit 525 left from Hoboken, New Jersey on August 7, 1917 and arrived at the shores of St. Nazaire, France on August 20, where they served with the 63rd and 68th French Infantry Divisions. “They gave us a uniform, took us on march, put [us] on the boat, and we were on the front,” Harold “Sandy” Steward ’20 explained. “Boy, were [the French] glad to see us.” They arrived at the front line near Verdun on October 9, where they recovered wounded soldiers from the battlefields in Ford Model T Ambulance Automobiles. After serving in Verdun, Unit 525 traveled to Aisne, Marvn, Champagne, and finally to Alsace. They were stationed in Alsace when the war ended, and they remained there until March of 1919 before sailing home in April.

Unit 524, on the other hand, did not leave for Europe until January 9, 1918. They actively participated with various American Divisions, and following the conclusion of the Aisne-Marne Offensive, Unit 524 was transferred to the defensive sector in the Vosges Mountains. In October 1918, Unit 524 was sent to the offensive with the American 77th division, actively engaged in various locations. While en route back to the Mountains with the 77th, the Armistice was signed on November 11, 1918.

Unit 525 arrived back at Bucknell in May 1919 after 23 months of active service in France. University officials declared a holiday so students could celebrate their arrival with the townspeople of Lewisburg. Unit 524 reached Fort Dix, NJ in June 1919, where they were mustered out after 18 months of overseas service. Years later, both units were also celebrated during Homecoming at Bucknell on October 23, 1954. There they were honored during the homecoming football game at Memorial Stadium, which is named in dedication to Bucknellians who served during World War I as well as other wars. As the centennial of the Armistice signing approaches, I ask that the University community and alums celebrate and remember the brave men who served in units 524 and 525 of the U.S.A.A.S. who sailed home over the deep blue sea , just as we did in ’54,.

]]>Registration is now open for #BUDSC18!https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2018/08/13/registration-is-now-open-for-budsc18/
Mon, 13 Aug 2018 19:53:45 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8420Registration is now open for #BUDSC18, Bucknell University’s fifth annual Digital Scholarship Conference. There is no registration fee for Bucknell faculty, students and staff. The conference will take place on campus from October 5th-7th. The theme of this year’s conference is “Digital Scholarship: Expanding Access, Activism, and Advocacy.”

#BUDSC18 will bring together a community of practitioners–faculty, researchers, librarians, artists, educational technologists, students, administrators, and others–committed to promoting access to and through digital scholarship. We consider “access” in the broadest possible terms: accessible formats and technologies, access through universal design for learning, access to a mode of expression, access to stories that might not otherwise be heard or that might be lost over time, access to understanding and knowledge once considered beyond reach.

We hope to see you at the conference this fall for another exciting installment of BUDSC.

]]>2018 Digital Pedagogy Institutehttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2018/06/19/2018-digital-pedagogy-institute/
Tue, 19 Jun 2018 18:07:46 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8398From May 21-15, members of DP&S and Research Services worked with seven faculty from across Bucknell to devise course assignments integrating digital technologies. The institute is intended to help faculty identify and create two to three specific modules or assignments for a course that integrate established teaching methods with emerging digital methodologies and tools in order to meet learning outcomes, increase student engagement, and further students’ digital literacy skills. The institute is aligned with the University’s digital scholarship initiative, whereby teaching and research are enhanced, extended, or reconsidered through application of technology.

The Institute opened with a discussion of learning objectives and reasons for using digital tools. The conversation then moved to topics such as digital literacy, assignment scaffolding, copyright and fair use, and Open Educational Resources (OERs). DP&S staff introduced faculty to the range of digital tools available to them, and then the participants were divided into groups based on the technologies they were interested in using. These technologies included WordPress, Comic Life, Adobe Spark, Piktochart, Voyant, LIWC2015, and multiple iOs applications.

Below is a list of participating faculty and the assignments they devised.

Elizabeth Capaldi
Associate Professor of Biology and Animal Behavior
Students will use Piktochart to illustrate scientific concepts. Also, she further developed a video assignment on the behavior of social insects

Lara Dick
Assistant Professor of Mathematics
Students will explore and evaluate iPad apps designed for elementary school mathematics and compare those apps to physical objects that demonstrate mathematical concepts.

Brantley Gasaway
Associate Professor of Religious Studies
Students will use Adobe Spark to create short films about important events in religious history.

Obed Lira
Assistant Professor of Spanish
Students will utilize Voyant and LIWC2015 to perform sentiment analysis of Spanish texts.

Le Paliulis
Associate Professor of Biology
Using Comic Life, students will illustrate the history of key discoveries in genetics. With Comic Life, AnimationDesk, and various infographic apps, students will overcome misconceptions of scientific concepts.

Brian Smith
Assistant Professor of Chemistry
Students will be introduced to and then develop models in the computational chemistry software packages, Gaussian and Gaussview, based on a series of scaffolded assignments.

]]>Call for Participation: Bucknell Digital Scholarship Conference 2018!https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2018/05/11/call-for-participation-bucknell-digital-scholarship-conference-2018/
Fri, 11 May 2018 19:24:40 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8383Bucknell University will host its fifth annual digital scholarship conference (#BUDSC18) from October 5th-7th. The theme of the conference is “Digital Scholarship: Expanding Access, Activism, and Advocacy.”

#BUDSC18 will bring together a community of practitioners–faculty, researchers, librarians, artists, educational technologists, students, administrators, and others–committed to promoting access to and through digital scholarship. We consider “access” in the broadest possible terms: accessible formats and technologies, access through universal design for learning, access to a mode of expression, access to stories that might not otherwise be heard or that might be lost over time, access to understanding and knowledge once considered beyond reach.

We encourage proposals that explore or critique digital scholarship as it relates to access, broadly conceived. Topics may include, but should not be limited to, the following:

Accessibility of digital platforms and technology

Access to resources to engage in or produce digital scholarship

Digital scholarship and social change

Sustainability and future access to digital scholarship

Digital scholarship and multimodal/interdisciplinary access

Access to digital scholarship beyond the academy

The public mission of digital scholarship

Creating opportunities for diverse voices and perspectives

Designing for access, activism, and advocacy

Submissions may take the form of interactive presentations, project demos, electronic posters, panel discussions, work-in-progress sessions, workshops, lightning talks, or other creative formats.

We look forward to building on the success of the last four years, in which we have come together to discuss challenges, share working models, reflect on projects, and inspire new avenues for actively including students in public scholarly pursuits. For more information, please view our highlights from the 2017 meeting.

What is Open Education Week?

Open Education Week’s goal is to raise awareness about free and open educational opportunities that exist for everyone, everywhere, right now. We want to highlight how open education can help people meet their goals in education, whether that’s to develop skills and knowledge for work, supporting formal studies, learning something new for personal interest, or looking for additional teaching resources.

Who is contributing to Open Education Week?

Open Education Week is coordinated by the The Open Education Consortium, an association of hundreds of institutions and organizations around the world that are committed to the ideals of open education. Universities, colleges, schools and organizations from all over the world have come together to showcase what they’re doing to make education more open, free, and available to everyone.

]]>From Special Collections/University Archives: The History of Larison Hallhttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2018/02/27/from-special-collections-university-archives-the-history-of-larison-hall/
Tue, 27 Feb 2018 18:52:21 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8370In 1856, Larison Hall was built to house the women attending the Lewisburg Female Institute, a school affiliated with and administered by the University to educate young women. As the first building on the “women’s college campus,” and initially named the Lewisburg Female Institute Building, Larison Hall was completed in 1857. Female Institute students and faculty moved to the newly constructed building from the school’s former site, the Casey Mansion in Lewisburg. Larison Hall was designed to include music and recitation rooms, a dining hall, and a third floor residence area. Larison Hall was central to the education of women by providing in one building living and classroom space as well as areas for leisure activities. In 1869/1870, the South Wing was added to Larison Hall, which included a gymnasium for women’s basketball and exercise added to the third floor.

The Female Institute was formed in 1852 to educate women, which was recognized as an important component of the University’s establishment as an institution of higher education in 1846. In August of 1852, the Casey Mansion, owned by James K. Casey and located at the corner of South Second and St. Lewis Streets, was purchased to house the Female Institute students. The Female Institute opened on October 21, 1852, and had more than forty students enrolled by April of 1853. The objective of its educational program was to prepare young women for the “cheerful discharge of the duties of life,” and provide intellectual training of the mind and heart. The curriculum included lectures and recitation, and was comprised of three years of instruction. Some of the courses taught in the program included algebra, ancient history, astronomy, evidence of Christianity, and Latin. After completing the requirements of the Female Institute’s curriculum, women received a diploma rather than a degree. Exceptional students were also awarded a gold medal at graduation.

The Female Institute was profitable for the University at Lewisburg and as the years progressed, enrollment increased and remained strong into the 20th century. To accommodate its growing enrollment, the University decided to move the Female Institute from town to a new building on “College Hill,” closer to campus. By November, 1856, a contract for construction was awarded, and the Female Institute moved to its new quarters in 1857. The original building provided offices, music and recitation rooms, a dining room, and a dormitory on the third floor. Over the years, the building expanded to include a south wing and a gymnasium on the third floor. In 1889 Bucknell Cottage, now named Larison Cottage, was constructed as a gift from William Bucknell, major benefactor to the University and Chairman of the Board of Trustees from 1882 – 1890. Connected to the Female Institute Building by an enclosed walkway, the Bucknell Cottage provided additional dormitory space and a studio used by the art program.

As its enrollment dwindled and co-education was fully established at the University, the Female Institute program was no longer sustainable or profitable and was discontinued in the 1915/1916 academic year. However, Larison Hall and Bucknell Cottage for Women, continued to be important as the primary residence halls and facility to support the education of women students. In June 1927, the Female Institute Building was named Larison Hall, in honor of Katherine Brown Larison, a graduate of the Female Institute in 1864 and its long-term principal from 1882-1897. Katherine Larison died in 1926 and left her entire estate to the University.

Additions and renovations to Larison Hall occurred throughout its history as a campus building. In 1928, kitchen facilities were constructed with the addition of a one-story addition on the north side. Known as the Women’s Dining Hall and later renamed Larison Dining Hall, the facility operated as a cafeteria until the early 1980s when a dance floor was installed for special event use and dining services were discontinued. In the mid-1990s Larison Hall Dining Hall was re-opened as a cafeteria supplementing the Bostwick Dining Hall, however, it closed again in 2005 when the University contracted out its dining services.

Today, Larison Hall is primarily utilized as a dormitory, but unlike its original intention to house only women, it now provides living space for both male and female students. Larison Hall may have changed its appearance over the years, but it remains important to the history of the University and is a reminder of the University’s investment in the education of women early on in its history.

]]>From Special Collections/University Archives: Reverend Eugenio Kincaidhttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2018/02/27/from-special-collections-university-archives-reverend-eugenio-kincaid/
Tue, 27 Feb 2018 18:49:46 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8367Reverend Eugenio Kincaid, often called the “Hero Missionary,” was an important figure in the early history of Bucknell University. A Baptist minister and missionary, Reverend Eugenio Kincaid was a trustee of the University at Lewisburg (former name of Bucknell University) from the time the University was chartered in 1846 until 1850. As a trustee and friend of the University, Reverend Kincaid volunteered his time to lead the effort to raise the $100,000 required by the State of Pennsylvania to establish the University as an institution of higher education. Reverend Kincaid was also a fundamental influence with encouraging Maung Shaw Loo from Burma, to enroll in the University at Lewisburg as its first international student.

Kincaid was born in Wethersfield, Connecticut in 1797. In 1822, he was one of five students who graduated from the Hamilton Literary and Theological Institution, later known as Colgate University, located in Hamilton, New York. Upon graduation, Reverend Kincaid devoted his life to Baptist missionary work and founded the First Baptist Church in Milton, PA. Reverend Kincaid eventually took his missionary work abroad, and in the spring of 1830, he sailed from Boston to Moulmein, Burma. Reverend Kincaid studied the native language of the Burmese, and preached for the English soldiers stationed in Burmese ports. After a year of preparation and a year of travel among the Burmese people, he moved to Ava, the capital city of Burma. Pushing through many hardships, Reverend Kincaid eventually baptized eleven converts to the Baptist religion and organized them into a church.

Reverend Kincaid returned to the Susquehanna Valley in 1843 on missionary leave. It was during this time that he assisted in the commission of the Baptist Literary Association of Pennsylvania, which was critical to the founding of the University at Lewisburg. Appointed as a University trustee in 1846, Reverend Kincaid suggested Stephen W. Taylor be recruited to lead the establishment of the new university in the Susquehanna Valley. Professor Taylor was essential in acquiring the proper paperwork to found the new university, but it was Reverend Kincaid who was central to obtaining the $100,000 financial commitments required by the State of Pennsylvania to charter the University at Lewisburg. He spoke of the hardships of his travels when soliciting for financial commitments: “The roads in Pennsylvania have been nearly impassable since the middle of November. Ten churches more are to be visited, and then all the work is done south and west of Pittsburgh.” Despite this, Reverend Kincaid’s efforts yielded, in subscriptions, around $101,236.50.

In the mid-1850’s, Reverend Kincaid returned to missionary work in Burma. As a connection between the University at Lewisburg and Burma, Reverend Kincaid opened the door for a young Burmese student named Maung Shaw Loo to attend the University at Lewisburg. In 1858, Maung Shaw Loo became the first international student to enter the University, graduating in 1864. He went on to earn a degree of Doctor of Medicine from the Charity Medical College in Cleveland, Ohio, and later became a physician for the King of Burma. Reverend Kincaid developed connections with the King of Burma and was viewed as an ambassador of goodwill between the King and President James Buchanan of the United States. Reverend Kincaid returned to the United States in 1866, and settled in Giard, Kansas until his death on April 3, 1883.

Special Collection/University Archives has in its collection a lacquered box once belonging to Reverend Eugenio Kincaid, which he brought to the United States from Burma in 1843. The box was donated to Bucknell University in 1954 by Mrs. Leigh Shields and Miss Anna Judd. This special artifact is a reminder of Reverend Kincaid’s missionary work in Burma as well as his dedication and commitment to establishing an institution of higher education in the Susquehanna Valley. If you are interested in viewing Reverend Kincaid’s lacquered box or want to find out more about him and the important role he played in Bucknell University’s early history, please contact Special Collection/University Archives at scua@bucknell.edu or 570-577-3101.

]]>From Special Collections/University Archives: The 1935 Orange Bowlhttps://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/2018/02/22/from-special-collections-university-archives-the-1935-orange-bowl/
Thu, 22 Feb 2018 20:19:00 +0000https://lit.blogs.bucknell.edu/?p=8364In 1935, the Bucknell Bison came face to face with the Miami Hurricanes in the first Orange Bowl game, and arose from the storm victorious. Commemorating the game with a shut out of 26-0, Bucknell University surely celebrated this historical event with a triumphant, ‘Ray!

The football tradition of the Orange Bowl game, played every New Year’s Day in Florida, arose from a struggling community in the midst of the Great Depression. This athletic event, originally called the Palm Festival, was to be the medicine the Miami community needed to aid their local economy. In 1933, during the first Palm Festival, the University of Miami upset Manhattan University with an unbelievable victory. During this time, Miami University was poverty-stricken, with athletic teams possessing little talent. The day before the game, the head coach of Manhattan University, Chick Meehan, met with civic leaders of the Miami Community and promised, “I will hold the score down to three touchdowns.” To the community’s shock, Chick Meehan’s team never got the chance to achieve a single touchdown, as the game ended with a score of 7-0 for Miami.

The excitement and success of the Palm Festival encouraged continuing the festival, but naming it to the Orange Bowl in 1934. At the time, the only other football bowl game was the Rose Bowl in California, a competition of college football teams representing the east and west coasts. The Orange Bowl would adopt a similar idea, but it represented college football teams from the south and the north with the competition happening in Miami, Florida.

The invitation to play Miami University in the Orange Bowl game was extended to Bucknell after they tied a game with Temple University. The Bison were completing their first season under their new coach, E. E. “Hooks” Mylin. After serious consideration, the Athletic Executive Committee accepted the invitation on the grounds that the game would not interfere with classes, and the football team had earned the opportunity to play this special game against Miami University. On December 26, 1934, 28 men, including 22 players, Coach Mylin, and other football/athletic staff left for Miami on what would have been the longest trip “the herd” had ever taken. On January 1, 1935 at 2:30pm, 5,134 fans watched as Bucknell University defeated the Miami Hurricanes 26 – 0 in the first ever Orange Bowl game.

There were three Orange Bowl records set in the first game.

Fewest players used by one team

The Miami Hurricanes competed with only 16 players. Due to substitutions, no team has used that number or less in the Orange Bowl since.

Fewest players used by both teams

Combined, the teams had only 37 players.

Least yards gained rushing

Miami University players only breached Bucknell’s line for 33 yards from the scrimmage.

It was predicted that the Florida heat would impair Bucknell, but the Bison players thrived under the hot sun. The Bucknell Bison team returned to Lewisburg on January 4, 1935. The Orange Bowl game was their seventh win of the year under Coach E.E. “Hooks” Mylin. The game made history not only as the first Orange Bowl – It was also the first time the Associated Press transmitted a photograph from a college football game, making it possible for people to quickly see an image of this historic athletic occasion.